In the Christian Science textbook, "Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures," Mary Baker Eddy has written (p. 485), "Emerge gently from matter into Spirit." In this book we find many clear instructions as to how we can best forge ahead in this greatest of all quests, emerging gently from matter into Spirit. In one place (p. 495) Mrs. Eddy puts the question, "How can I progress most rapidly in the understanding of Christian Science?" And her answer begins with these words: "Study thoroughly the letter and imbibe the spirit."

Occasionally the student is confronted with the argument that it is not necessary to be constantly studying the Bible and our Leader's works. But why not study as much as possible and put as much as possible into practice? Without thorough study, how is the student to grasp the teachings of Christian Science? To insure obedience to the rules laid down, it is essential that the letter should be pondered and thoroughly understood. Great numbers of people have learned how to order their lives happily and usefully, and have been healed of physical, moral, and financial difficulties, through diligently studying the writings of Mrs. Eddy, which have opened to them that great storehouse of spiritual truth, the Bible.

When Paul wrote to the Christians at Corinth, "The letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life," he surely was not pleading with them to give up studying the inspired writings of Scripture, but was, doubtless, pointing out to them that, unless their lives bore witness to the inspired teachings, these teachings were nothing to them. Our Master constantly turned those who came to inquire of him, and also those who came to scoff, to the teachings of the Old Testament. How often we read in the Gospels that he supported his teaching with the words, "It is written," or, "What is written in the law?" or, again, "Search the scriptures"!

Steady and honest study of the Bible and Mrs. Eddy's writings certainly tends to spiritualize consciousness and bring to us a clearer sense of divine Principle. It has an unfailing purifying and healing effect on the student's life and daily contact with the world. Many a student has discovered to his chagrin that some precept has been broken, not willingly but ignorantly, because he was insufficiently familiar, not only with the spirit of Christian Science, but with the letter of its teachings.

If a young man preparing to become a lawyer read his textbooks for only a few minutes every day, he would not progress very rapidly. Then, if it takes much time and diligent perseverance to assimilate human law, should not the one who has enlisted to make spiritual law the basis of his life be at least equally in earnest? He who would become a Christian Scientist loves to give much time to his books; otherwise, he can scarcely be called a diligent student of Christian Science.

The weekly Lesson-Sermon in the Christian Science Quarterly is full of rich, helpful teaching, and we can rejoice that this feast is already prepared. The Concordances to the Bible and to Science and Health and the other writings of Mrs. Eddy afford endless opportunity to learn more about God and man. Sometimes a worker feels that he is getting stale. This need not be, since he has the opportunity daily to feed in unexplored pastures, by consulting these Concordances, thus gathering for himself fresh spiritual food, in contemplating newly discerned forms of good.

The study of Christian Science is inexhaustible. The word "study" does not mean to skim lightly along the surface of ten or twenty pages once or twice a day, nor to hurry through the Lesson-Sermon merely to satisfy one's self that something has been done. Studying Christian Science means pondering over and taking hold of the subject mentally and prayerfully, weighing in thought each statement, letting the great light of Truth shine and glow in our consciousness till it must needs bring forth fruit after its kind. The Christian Scientist should be a profound thinker, for he has undertaken to become efficient in the most profound of all subjects, and it is natural that he should love to work with his books, deeply considering the newly appearing aspects of familiar subjects. If a subtle argument should try to prevent this work from going on systematically and joyously, or if a sense of reluctance or resistance to study is experienced, the error should be detected and handled as vigilantly as any other form of aggressive mental suggestion.

The argument of not having enough time is one which many have to counter. It is helpful to realize that we all have the same amount of time! Therefore, it is not really a question of how much time one has, but of how every moment of it is being used. When essentials are more thought of than nonessentials, the way to plan time for faithful study will be sought for earnestly, and will be found. If the suggestion were presented to the student that he had not enough of what are termed "the necessities of life," how quickly would he rise to deny the lie. Then must we not be just as insistent regarding our spiritual sustenance, the good, without the understanding of which we cannot truly live?

There is no virtue in lingering progress. In Christian Science we have the rules; then why not emerge "from matter into Spirit" as quickly as possible? All who are forsaking the dream of life in matter and dwelling to an ever increasing extent in spiritual consciousness not only are working out their own salvation, their own ascension, but are helping the whole world to rise out of the mists of matter through a better understanding of "the things which God hath prepared for them that love him."

Our Leader has written in "Retrospection and Introspection" (p. 85), "Of this also rest assured, that books and teaching are but a ladder let down from the heaven of Truth and Love, upon which angelic thoughts ascend and descend, bearing on their pinions of light the Christ-spirit."

Copyright, 1931, by The Christian Science Publishing Society, Falmouth and St. Streets, Boston, Massachusetts. Entered at Boston post office as second-class matter. Acceptance for mailing at a special rate of postage provided for in section 1103, Act of October 3, 1917, authorized on July 11,1918.